Our Kacee Jo can live a normal life now

Community raise funds for Limeside girl Kacee Jo Crutchley at Oasis Academy, Oldham. Pictured here are (l-r) mum Joanne Crutchley, Kacee Jo Crutchley and dad Jason Crutchley

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A GRATEFUL Limeside family embarked on a fundraising mission for a children's hospital to thank staff for the operation that changed their little girl's life.

Kacee Jo Crutchley (six) was diagnosed with craniosynostosis, a rare skull problem that causes a baby to be born with or develop an abnormally shaped head as the bones of the skull bones fuse together or grow in an abnormal way.

If not corrected with surgery craniosynostosis can cause severe problems during childhood as the brain is left with little room within the skull to grow, increasing pressure within the skull, leading to persistent headaches, learning difficulties, eye problems and other symptoms.

The condition was first noticed by her mum Joanne when Kacee's face began to look distorted as she grew. Joanne (38) said: "I knew something wasn't right and I was determined to have her looked at. I pushed my health visitor to look at her face and eventually went to see my GP.

"I was then referred to North Manchester and eventually Alder Hey Hospital. When she was diagnosed and told she would need a serious operation, we were so devastated.

"It took a long time for it to sink in and they told us that because it was so rare it had taken a while to diagnose."

Kacee Jo, a pupil at Limehurst Primary School, underwent a 13-hour operation at the hospital in Liverpool in August 2014, with surgeons using metal plates to reshape the four-year-old's skull. Joanne, from Limeside, continued: "It took a long time for her to recover and she missed a lot of school as she couldn't start until after October.

"But she is a very tough and quickly bounced back, much quicker than adults do.

"She didn't let it hold her back and now, two years later, she is a very clever girl who loves school.

"When the doctors told us that Kacee Jo would be fine and there was no lasting issues, we were so relieved.

"She will keep having to go back for check-ups until she is 18 but she should grow up perfectly normal, which is amazing."

To thank the hospital for everything they did, the family decided to set about raising money to help the hospital provide the same level of care to other families.

Kacee Jo's dad Jason (37), her brother Joshua (15) and cousin Olivia Marler (15) took part in a sponsored bike ride from Blackpool to Oldham last Saturday, taking on the 60-mile challenge in torrential rain and high winds.

The family then followed it with a fun day at Oasis Academy Oldham on Sunday, complete with a raffle, bake sale, games and visits from super-heroes.

Joanne added: "Alder Hey were brilliant with us and I can't thank them enough for everything that they did for Kacee Jo and the family.

"We wanted to do what we could to raise money for them.

"We didn't have a particular goal in mind, we just wanted to raise as much as possible, but anything we can do would help the hospital."

The family also thanked Cycle Tech in Lees for donating bikes and Tesco Failsworth for making donations to the cause.

To donate, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Joshua-Crutchley.

• And check out more pictures of Kacee Jo on our picture sales page.